Egypt Part 2

Alazhar mosque

The mosque and university are named in honor of Fatima Az-Zahraa, the daughter of Muhammad(pbuh),The one of the verse which is written on the Mihrab (the wall that directs the Qibla)

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ – الَّذِينَ هُمْ فِي صَلَاتِهِمْ خَاشِعُونَ – وَالَّذِينَ هُمْ عَنِ اللَّغْوِ مُعْرِضُونَ

Successful indeed are the believers – who are humble in their prayers – and who avoid vain talk,(Alquran Al-Anam 162-163)

The mosque is built somewhere around 971AD and school connected with it was founded in 988Ad which claims to be the oldest Islamic university in the world.Al-Azhar is considered by most Sunni Muslims to be the most prestigious school of Islamic law, and its scholars are seen as the highest scholars in the Muslim world. Its stated objectives remain the propagation of Islamic culture and the Arabic language.

The mosque has a beautiful marble floor, pillars of stones and a lot of supporting wood work.tourists may enter the prayer hall, which is warmly carpeted and supported by alabaster pillars. the washrooms(toilet and Wudu area) are not clean and water is all over the place and you get wood sleepers to perform ablution. The mosque area is quite big and can easily  accommodate  20,000 people. There are some lectures going on from religious scholars all the time in between prayers and anyone can sit and listen.

Khan-E-Khalili Bazaar

The mosque is surrounded by a huge bazaar and a lot o tourist and locals visit everyday. The place is ideal for shopping (If you bargain well)The rule of thumb for Egyptian shopping is say 40% of the offered price and if the shopkeeper becomes in negotiation mood then stick to your price, If he becomes rude and don't even want to talk then increase your offer price(good luck).

There a lot of shops and also street vendors, if they understand you are tourist then get ready to have a lot of vendors around you trying to sell necklace, jewelry and some monuments( their prices are not high but if you buy the other consider you as potential customer and makes it really irritating)

This is best place to buy Egyptian Papyrus ( famous from Egypt,its writing or designs on paper like material from the pith of papyrus plant) there are a lot of fake ones made from banana or bamboo stem (I don't know how to make difference but an experienced local may help). the bazaar in evening time is great way to spend time and heat at the corner of the bazaar street there are many options and BBQ is on top.

Foods

Don't eat the street food, Its not just the hygiene but foreigner are not use to the tap water and can cause stomach problem (stomach issues are worst for the tourist,isn't it).Drink  bottle water and always keep small bottle with you.
As compared to Europe, Turkey or Asia in Egypt there is very few variety of foods with just salt or slight spice. BBQ is the famous ordered food in restaurants specially mix grill. The Egyptian are crazy for morning beans, the dish is called FUL and made form Fava beans. For me It was little tasteless but I saw that people were making que in the night to buy it from popular shops for the morning breakfast.
some other foods which I see there were
Aish: bread baked in oven and normally hand size.( it was nice,I lied it)
Falafel and tamayyah: Fava beans and chickpeas meshed and deep fried. (nice crispy taste)
Humus bi tahina: a paste made from chickpeas and seasame,for spread on toast or bread (too thick and oily taste)
kofta: meatballs ( spicessssss, please add spices)
baba ghanoush: grilled egg plant,meshed and served with olive oil (good side dish)
Koshary:there was famous dish with rice,milk and pasta,(it wasnt that good, that milk,pasta and rice combination was unacceptable to my taste)
grill corn and sweet potatoes
Sugarcane juice is available almost in all street and taste good in hot weather.

Cairo traffic
worst in the world
You can literally walk faster at the peak times, small hitting of car is nationally acceptable and crossing road for pedestrian can be nightmare. If taxi people are choosy if they know that they will be stuck in traffic if they go to your destination then they will never pick you. So avoid peak times.

River Nile flows through the center of the city and you will pass through bridge many times. to have a more sightseeing trip of river then multiple options of small to big ships are available for 1 hour to 6 hours.
In short my experience of Egypt is excellent and with all issues of traffic and small cheats I still love the country and Its worth to visit again and again.